Parent Letter 5/31/19

Dear Parents,
 
Families will find included in this Friday Letter important information regarding the end of the 2018-2019 school year.
 
WOW!  The second to the last week of school has flown by!  Our teachers and students have been very busy completing lessons, projects and assessments as well as enjoying each other’s company as we complete the remainder of the school year.  Only 3½ days of school for students (but who is counting?).
 
Today, at our school Mass, we celebrated the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth.  In the Gospel of Luke, we heard that when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in Elizabeth’s womb.  Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”  We say this every time we pray the Hail Mary.

Faculty Members Retiring in 2019
At the end of this school year, two beloved faculty members, Ms. Kathy Rowe, Middle School Religion Teacher and Mrs. Diane Baker, Technology Coordinator will retire from St. Joseph’s School.  We want to thank them their years of service to the students, families, and faculty of our school.  Please join us in thanking them and wishing them well during their retirement. 
 
Christy Frost, Enrollment and Marketing Coordinator
Christy Frost will be leaving her position as Enrollment and Marketing Coordinator at the end of this school year.  She will be returning to her previous role as a marketing consultant and will be assisting her husband with his small business.  Christy will, however, continue to work with our school on a consulting basis and as an active parent in our community.  We thank Christy for her four years of dedicated service to our school.

Eighth Grade Students (soon to be St. Joe’s Alumni!)
It is currently a very exciting time for our eighth grade students.  On Thursday, they completed their last full day of school.  Many special events are scheduled for them to celebrate the completion of the education at St. Joes.  Today, they spent the day at Valley Fair enjoying the roller coasters and the water park as their last class trip together.  Last evening, they enjoyed a tremendous boat cruise on the Mississippi River.  On Monday, June 3, the students have a commencement rehearsal, a special luncheon, and some unexpected surprises.  The commencement Mass and ceremony for the students will be on Tuesday, June 4 at 6;30 p.m. in the Church of St. Joseph.  A special reception will follow the ceremony in the Great Room.  Congratulations to our eighth students on all of your accomplishments during your years at St. Joseph’s School.
 
Cole Richardson Award
Congratulations to Abigail Farley recipient of the 2019 Cole Richardson Award.  Each year, this award is given to a 6th grade student who best exemplifies the qualities of faithfulness, generosity, kindness and friendship.  The award honors the memory and spirit of St. Joseph’s student, Cole Richardson.  Thank you to  Mr. & Mrs. Richardson for presenting this award to our student. 
 
Last Day of School for Kindergarten and Grades 1-7:  Thursday, June 6
The last day of school for students in grades K-7 will be Thursday, June 6. School will begin at 8:40 a.m. with the dismissal of students at 12:45 p.m.   District 197 transportation will be available for our families to and from school on this day.  District food service will not be available on the last day of school.  Our teachers will complete their school year on Friday, June 7 with teacher in-service and a special luncheon. 
 
Fitness Fun Day!
Mark your calendars!  Fitness Fun Day is scheduled for Wednesday, June 5.  Students in grades K-5 will enjoy a morning of fun and games at Charles Matson Field (across from Heritage Middle School).  Students in Kindergarten – grade 2 will be at the field from 9:00-10:30 a.m. and students in grades 3-5 will be at the field from 10:30 a.m.-12:00 noon.  Afterwards, they will be treated to a lunch at school.  We need many volunteers to make this fun St. Joe’s tradition a success.  Please click here to volunteer!  If you have any questions, please contact the school office.  We thank Mrs. VanDiver, our teachers, and our Home and School Association for hosting this special event for our students.  Go Jaguars!!!
 
Relevant Radio – Generous Contribution!
This week our school received a gift of $12,164 from an anonymous benefactor who matched contributions to Relevant Radio at the annual Christ Brings Hope Banquet. You are invited to tune to Relevant Radio 1330 AM for programs that support families in celebrating, sharing, and understanding more deeply our Catholic faith.  Consider downloading the free Relevant Radio mobile app so you can take your faith with you this summer, at home, at the cabin, or wherever you go! 

Fall Sports 2019 Now Open!
New this year – Fall Sports Registration is open now and will close June 5.  Please do not send payment in to the school.  You will be billed in September through TADS.   Registration will not be open throughout the summer.
 
All students in grades 5 - 8 are invited and encouraged to sign up for fall sports at this time.  As teams are determined by the number of participants in the sport, it is important to account for all students participating before the start of school.  Some teams may begin practice prior to the start of school.   You will be contacted if your team begins prior to the start of school.  If students fail to sign-up before the registration deadline, they may not be allowed to participate in the sport once the season begins or attend practices.  (Exceptions: new students) A $20.00 late fee will be applied to late registrations.
 
At the time of registration, parents will need to turn in the Catholic Mutual Consent and Liability Waiver, the Christian Ethics form signed by both the athlete and their parent(s), and fill out a registration form.  Registration packets went home today with all students in grades 4-7.  A registration form is also available below.
 
              5-8 Soccer (boys) (girls)  $80.00
              5-8 Volleyball (girls)       $80.00
 
School Age Care – ISD 197
Last month, we were notified that ISD 197 School Age Care would not be continuing their program here at St. Joseph’s School.  We thank the leadership at ISD 197 for their service to our school community and understand and support their decision moving forward. 
 
We understand that the before and after school care program is very important to many of our school families.  St. Joseph’s School will provide a before and after school care program for the 2019-2020 school year.  Options for providing care for our students are being reviewed at this time.   For your planning purposes, we will work to keep a similar schedule in place for your family.  Please watch for additional information as we finalize plans for the school age care program for 2019-2020.
 
No District Lunch Service
There will be no District lunch service on Thursday, June 6 ^th.  We ask that students bring a bag lunch and beverage from home.
 
District Transportation Available on Thursday June 6
There will be district transportation on Thursday, June 6 ^th both in the morning and in the afternoon.  This is an early release day for our students.  Students will be dismissed at 12:45pm.  Please watch for an envelope that is going home with bus students containing information about morning route times.  If you have any questions, please contact ISD 197 651-403-8320.
 
Tuition Agreements
Tuition agreements have been sent out via email from TADS.  It is important that you complete your agreements by the provided deadline.  If you have any questions, please contact our school office.
 
2019-2020 Enrollment
Our school administration and faculty continue to prepare for another exciting school year.  Please continue to assist our school in increasing our student enrollment at all levels by encouraging any families you know to “come and see” our school.  We ask that you think of inviting them to school for Mass, a special event, or even just stop by for a visit.
We would like to remind you that there is a $500 Referral Credit available to our current school families for referring new families that register to attend St. Joseph’s School.  Families may contact Christy Frost, our Enrollment Coordinator (651-457-8550) to learn more about our programs and schedule a tour of the school.
 
Jaguar Playground and Greenspace
This summer includes plans to build a new play structure and enhance the green space on our school campus.  Information about this important project for our school is included on our school website.  Click here to view this exciting information!
 
Please prayerfully discern how you may be able to financially support this project allowing for work to begin in June and the project to be completed in August prior to the beginning of the new school year.  All gifts are important and will assist us in reaching our goal of $200,000 for the project.  Thank you for your generosity!  Please contact Mr. Wesely and/or Mrs. VanDiver if you have any questions or would like additional information on the project.
 
Library End of the Year Information
Please check your closets, bedrooms, family vehicles, classrooms, or wherever lost books may hide.  We have many “checked out” books that have not yet been returned to the School Library.  Please return all books as soon as possible.  Thank you for your assistance.
 
School Mass – Thursday, June 6
Please join us for our final Mass of school Mass on Thursday, June 6 at 9:00am in the church.  School families, friends, and members of the parish are always invited to pray with our students and faculty. 
 
2019-2020 Important School Calendar Dates
As we work to complete the 2019-2020 School Calendar, we would like to share a few of the important dates with you.  The final calendar will be sent out shortly.

• September 3:1^st Day of School Grades 1 – 6
• September 4:1^st Day of School Grades 7 – 8
• September 5:1^st Day of School Kindergarten
• December 23 - January 1:Christmas Break
• October 16-18:MEA No School
• March 30- April 3:Spring Break
• April 10-13:Easter Break
• June 4:Last Day of School

  2018-2019 St. Joseph’s School Yearbook
We do have a small number of extra yearbooks on order.  If you would like to reserve one, please send your payment in an envelope with your child’s name and homeroom teacher listed.  Checks should be made out to St. Joseph’s School.  We thank Mrs. Wrobel and her ‘Yearbook Helpers” for creating this beautiful keepsake of memories and pictures from an exciting 2018-2019 school year.
 
Lost and Found
Students and families are highly encouraged to check the school’s “Lost and Found” for any items that may be missing from home.  Our “Lost and Found” has been set out on tables located on 1 ^st floor.  Unclaimed items will be donated to a clothing shelf after June 15.
 
St. Joe's STREAM Camp
This summer Mr. Cina and Ms. Walsh are hosting a four day STREAM Camp for our incoming 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. This will be a located right at St Joe's! The students will spend their mornings reading, designing, and engineering. We will have outdoor activities, snack, and time in Adoration each day. Please see the gold flyer in your Friday Folder. 
 
Thank you ~ Thank you ~ Thank you!
Thank you to Cheryl Weimer for the beautiful flowers in the planters and around our St. Joseph’s Statue in the front of our school.  We so appreciate your hard work and dedication to keeping these garden spaces looking so beautiful! 
 
Attendance Hotline
An important reminder to parents: please call the Attendance Hotline (651-457-3031) if your child will be absent or late.  Also, if your child is leaving early, please send a note to school so we can put them on our appointment list for teachers.  Thank you!

Just a Reminder 
Please continue to review our Friday Letters, check your child’s Family Folder, our school website, Facebook, Twitter, and the St. Joseph parish bulletin to keep updated on all the exciting happenings at St. Joseph’s School. 
  
For Your Information 
St. Joseph’s School is an important ministry of the Church of St. Joseph.  Some of our school families are not members of the parish.  In our efforts to serve all school families, our Friday Letter may at times include information about activities and events that are taking place at the Church of St. Joseph. 
 
Upcoming Parish Events and Information Include:                                                      
Please click the link to the bulletin for additional information and activities at the Church of St. Joseph.
 
Catholic Watchmen Night – Monday, June 3 6:15pm-9:30pm
All men of the Parish & School are invited to an evening of fellowship, spiritual reflection and a great meal!  Our Special Guest Speaker will be Fr. Lenny Andrie.  Please see the attached flyer for more information
 
“St. Joseph’s Catholic School educates students through faith formation, academic excellence,
and the development of virtue to be disciples of Christ.” 
 
Parents, thank you for supporting the mission of our school and entrusting your children to our care each day.  We look forward to an exciting and very busy end of our school year.  St. Joseph, pray for us!
 
Click here to link to the weekly St. Joseph’s Church Bulletin .
 
Important Links:
2019-2020 Fall Sports Registration
Catholic Watchmen
 
May Calendar Look Ahead:
Please consider joining us for some of the special events at our school.

• Tuesday, June 4 – 8^th Grade Commencement 6:30pm Church – Reception to follow
• Wednesday, June 5 – Fitness Fun Day
• Thursday, June 6- Mass 9am, Last Day of School – 12:45 Dismissal – NO District Lunch Service.Bus service is available.